State Probes Charity`s Ties To House Bid

October 19, 1992|By Rick Pearson.

The Illinois Attorney General`s Office is investigating the links between a suburban charity and its executive director`s political campaign for possible violations of election law and the charitable trust act.

Officials for Atty. Gen. Roland Burris have asked the State Board of Elections to open its own investigation into the campaign of Peter Roskam, a Republican from Wheaton who is running in the 40th House District.

In a letter to the state elections board, officials for the attorney general`s office said an investigation it began last March indicates Roskam may have used the charity to provide his campaign with sophisticated mailing lists used to target likely voters and contributors.

A copy of the letter, obtained by the Tribune, details the possible violations and also provides an example of the increasing competitive drive for a technological edge that candidates are seeking, even in local contests for the General Assembly.

Roskam has denied any wrongdoing and is cooperating with investigators. He would not comment on whether he believed the investigation was politically motivated, although other Republicans have questioned the motivations of the Democratic attorney general.

Roskam is seeking election to the House against Democrat Pat Cullerton in the 40th House District, which includes Wheaton, Lisle, Naperville, Winfield and West Chicago.

Cullerton is the brother of Sen. John Cullerton (D-Chicago), a close ally of powerful Democratic House Speaker Michael J. Madigan of Chicago.

Roskam is executive director of the Glen Ellyn-based Educational Assistance Limited. The charity solicits contributions of excess inventory from businesses that are then turned over to colleges and universities in exchange for scholarships or tuition waivers for disadvantaged youths.

The charity was honored with President Bush`s Volunteer Action Award and Roskam has said it is an example of how the private sector can come up with solutions for public problems.

But the attorney general`s office said its own investigation found Roskam, his father, Swede, and Educational Assistance Limited may have solicited publishers and marketers to contribute mailing lists for addresses with ZIP codes in Roskam`s district.

``Our investigation was begun to protect the charitable assets of EAL and we are now analyzing several transactions to determine whether this office should take appropriate action under charitable trust law,`` James R. Carroll, first assistant attorney general, said in his letter to the State Board of Elections.

``We have discovered potential conflicts of interest relating to Peter Roskam`s use of EAL`s charitable assets in furtherance of his political committee and possibly in breach of his fiduciary duty of loyalty to EAL,``

the letter said. ``In addition to discovering charitable trust law concerns, it appears Roskam and his committee may have violated campaign finance disclosure laws.``

Al Manning, a spokesman for the attorney general`s office, denied the investigation was politically motivated and said it was launched after the office received complaints from Grant Eckhoff, a Republican who ran unsuccessfully against Roskam in the primary.

``There`s no political involvement of the attorney general`s office in this, particularly since state law assigns us to safeguard the charitable trust act,`` Manning said.

According to depositions taken by the attorney general`s office, Geoff Sullivan, a former Roskam campaign manager, told investigators that the charity provided the campaign with at least 10 computer disks as Roskam began forming his computerized voter database to mail out campaign materials and solicit funds.

In addition, the attorney general`s office obtained copies of letters that Roskam`s father wrote to other firms that have mailing lists, asking them to donate the lists to Educational Assistance Limited. The attorney general`s office believes donated lists may have found their way into the database of the Roskam campaign.

Disclosure reports for the Friends of Peter Roskam do not disclose any in-kind contributions, such as donated mailing lists, from either Educational Assistance Limited or other firms, the attorney general`s office said.

Roskam, however, said last week that Sullivan, who stepped down as his campaign manager last November, was mistaken about the source of the disks that provided his voter mailing lists.

``What he`s mistaken about is that those didn`t come from Educational Assistance Limited,`` Roskam said, when asked about Sullivan`s comments in his deposition.

Instead, he said, his father was soliciting separate mailing lists for both the campaign and a special Du Page scholarship initiative program for Educational Assistance Limited and that the ZIP codes coincided with those for the House district.

Roskam also denied that he intentionally sought to circumvent campaign disclosure laws by postdating to July 1 a check owed in June to a computer vendor for the conversion of magnentic tapes into computer disks. Roskam said he paid a bill he received on June 20 with a check dated July 1.

But because the campaign reporting period runs on a July 1-June 30 fiscal year, the attorney general`s office said postdating the check kept the expenditure from showing on disclosure reports for six months.

Daniel White, assistant executive director of the State Board of Elections, said the board has received the letter from the attorney general`s office and is reviewing it. But he said it was doubtful any investigation could be completed before the Nov. 3 election.